Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed an executive order Saturday ordering storefront recruitment centers to be moved to nearby Florida National Guard armories and pushing for a streamlined process for National Guard members to gain concealed weapons permits.
While ISIS has yet to claim responsibility for the shooting resulting in the death of five military members in Chattanooga, the order says, “the state will take any and every measure available to secure military personnel against the planned attacks of ISIS.”
Scott is not the first governor to take steps after the shooting in order to protect national guardsmen. The governors of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma have now also ordered national guardsmen to be armed.
While this has been occurring at the state level, U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno has cautioned against lifting the no-gun policy at military installations. He is concerned about the risks of accidental discharges saying, “I think we have to be careful about over-arming ourselves, and I’m not talking about where you end up attacking each other.”
The recruitment centers Scott is relocating are all located around urban centers: Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville, and Miami.
The order states, “These Guardsmen will be relocated to armories unitl General Michael Calhoun can fully evaluate and make recommendations for improving the security of store-front recuritment centers. Such possible infastructure improvements shall include, but not be limited to, installing bullet-proof glass and enhancing video surveillance equipment.”
It continues to say, “For those Florida Guardsmen who need a new state concealed weapons permit, the state will support the expedited processing of licenses for those soldiers.”
The executive order also calls for added security checks from local law enforcement.